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  • Horsefeathers: & Other Curious Words by Charles E. Funk book cover
  • Horsefeathers: & Other Curious Words by Charles E. Funk book cover
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Horsefeathers: & Other Curious Words

by Charles E. Funk

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A browseable tour of the stories behind everyday oddities

$17.88 USD
$27.94 USD $17.88 USD
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Paperback New English

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Awards & Recognition

  • Critical praise

    Praised by the San Francisco Chronicle

    Attributed critical praise describing the book as increasingly curious and engaging as it progresses.

AlbakiReads Editorial

A browseable tour of the stories behind everyday oddities

Charles E. Funk gathers the origins of more than 600 curious English words and expressions, moving from familiar sayings such as “mad as a wet hen” to names for foods, sweets, fireplace hardware, and fanciful terms like “hobgoblin.” The book’s organizing pleasure is etymological: each entry addresses the question of how an unexpected word or phrase acquired its name. With examples spanning colloquial language, regional food vocabulary, and household objects, it offers a wide-ranging reference for tracing the histories tucked inside everyday speech.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Word and language-history enthusiasts
  • Browsers of etymology and phrase-origin collections
  • Readers curious about idioms, food names, and unusual English vocabulary

Themes

EtymologyEnglish idiomsWord originsEveryday languageRegional vocabulary

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

From "mad as a wet hen" to "corn dodger" and "hobgoblin," Charles Funk's collections of curious words and expressions are a treasure trove of word origin.

If you've ever wondered why the candy is called butterscotch; why a certain Southern food is called a hushpuppy; why log supports in a fireplace are known as andirons, or, sometimes, firedogs; you'll be fascinated by the origins of the over 600 words discussed in "a book that gets curiouser and curiouser as it goes along"(San Francisco Chronicle).

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